People seem to have a whole different opinion when they stay onsite. I think when you just hop over to any park for a day, you never get the same feel as when you actually stay onsite.
I agree. Walking or taking the boat to US/IOA from the onsite resorts changes the feeling of the vacations. On our last trip we stayed at Portofino and, although it was a longer walk than we expected, we loved being able to just go back and forth to the resort for a swim break. Portofino is a beautiful resort - it was quiet, the Deluxe queen rooms were spacious, the pool was great for the kids and the grounds were well maintained. Although I would never book Club again - nothing wrong with it, just didn't find it convenient for us to make it worth it.
But that's not why we stay onsite. If they stopped offering the free express pass for the onsite guests, we will not be staying onsite. It's much better for us to stay at the DVC villas and drive over to US/IOA. Although we thought Portofino was a wonderful resort, we would never book it without the free Express Pass.